The aims of the conference Setting Criteria and an Agenda for Quality Improvement (QI) Research are to: 1. Develop the conceptual framework that distinguishes QI research as a discipline in healthcare and that provides QI researchers with justification as a pathway of academic pursuit and a rationale for publication in leading medical and healthcare journals. 2. Define standards of methodologic rigor that enable reviewers to critically appraise the contribution of a QI research initiative and determine whether a manuscript is suitable for publication. 3. Set a research agenda that reveals the burning issues and top priorities for discovery of the principles that enable the deployment and teaching of QI which enhance the value of healthcare services. Background and significance. The audience of presenters and QI researchers at prior meetings of the International Scientific Symposium on Improving Quality and Value in Health Care voiced concern over the rigor of QI research and the lack of a framework to guide the emerging discipline of healthcare QI research. These concerns of the research community provide the impetus for a special conference during the 1999 annual Scientific Symposium. Conference. Leaders in QI research will compose manuscripts and hold a conference on quasi-experimental designs, measurement in QI research, QI statistics, IRB and QI research, the perspective of clinical epidemiology, a conceptual framework for QI research, a pragmatic science, guidelines for appraisal and publication of QI research, and setting an agenda for the urgent priority issues related to QI research. Product. The conference and related materials are formulated to address the conceptual framework that distinguishes QI research as a discipline (aim one), the standards of methodologic rigor for QI research (aim two), and a research agenda for QI research (aim three). The proceedings of the conference will be published as a special supplement to the journal Medical Care. Evaluation. The Symposium and Agenda Workshop will use the standard Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) evaluation process. Dissemination. The primary means of dissemination is the distribution of Medical Care to its subscribers. In addition, the abstracts of the manuscripts and related material will be posted on the IHI Web site under the Scientific Symposium section.